Departed
by Invaluable
Summary: The last scene of the movie. The way I imagined it should have been. Character death


Title: Departed

Author: Chi

Disclaimer: I do not own Beauty and the Beast. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended

A/N: This is a frighteningly short piece. It came about because I saw Beauty and the Beast for like the millionth time and (also for the millionth time) I complained about the Beast living at the end of the movie (because yes, this is Disney movie-based). I mean, the breaking of the spell was only supposed to turn Beast back to a human, not miraculously cure his wounds. I have nothing against the Beast. He is the only character (besides Belle) that I like in the movie (oh and Mrs. Potts and Cogsworth (sp?)). So after I complained, I was told to either "deal with it or do something about it" and so I did do something about it.

A/N2: I promise this is the last one, heh. Just wanted to mention that this takes place _right_ when the Beast lets go of Gaston after he held him by the neck and dangled him off the edge of the roof. Now, Enjoy! Oh, and don't forget, reviews make the author happy!

--'-,---

"_Everyone and everything has a time to die_."

--Abhorsen in _Sabriel_

Belle had told me about him once. I think she said his name was Jason, or Gabriel. I couldn't remember, and frankly, it didn't matter what his name was. The only thing that mattered to right then was that she had come back. She had come back for _me_, the Beast. I loved her, which was easy enough to figure out, but when she came back I thought that maybe, just maybe, she might love me too. I didn't have time to play games with Jeremy. Belle was waiting for me.

My shoulder throbbed with pain from the arrow that had pierced it earlier. Earlier was when I didn't have the will to fight back, when I had let that creep treat me like a rag doll, but now Belle was here. I fought for her, for us.

There was a fluttering in my heart and a clenching in my gut that made it easy to imagine there was no pain. It was a beautiful feeling. It was butterflies and angels singing. It was Belle.

Eagerly, I climbed the rooftops until I was just below the balcony where she waited for me. I had a fleeting thought of a night when we sat, just the two of us, beside the fire and she read me a story- or was it a poem?- about two star-crossed lovers on a balcony. Well, the girl was on the balcony, and the boy was in the bushes or something. It was by that Englishman... Shookspeer?

All thoughts of poets and stories left me when Belle took my hand. The coldness drummed into me by the pouring rain went utterly ignored, and all I felt was the warmth of her tiny palm in my enormous paw. Before I could stop myself, I reached out to touch her perfect skin, her silky hair. Her hair was a beautiful shade of brown, light enough to shine, but dark enough not to be mistaken for blonde. She was a dream. I opened my paw and felt her smooth, soft, pearly-white skin. I almost shivered with emotion.

Then it happened. There was an explosion of pain in my side and I saw red. That damned Gary character had snuck up behind me and jammed a twelve-inch knife into me, puncturing several vital organs. The pain was near unbearable and I cried out to the night.

"Help me," I roared, though I knew no one but the wolves understood what I said. I barely noticed when the other man lost his footing, falling backwards into the dark and foggy abyss. I would have fallen too if it hadn't been for her... Belle. I knew she would never let me fall. I had faith in her. With every ounce of strength she possessed, she pulled me over the railing and onto the balcony floor. She began to speak to me, but I couldn't hear her over the rain and my own blood pounding in my ears. I think I might have spoken to her too, but whatever I said was vague and incoherent. My eyes started to cloud over, and I fought to remain conscious. I was _not_ afraid to die, but she had to know how I felt. I had to tell her before I...died. I had to tell her...

I begged the rain to stop and the blood in my ears to quiet down. I prayed to God and to whatever deities might be listening to please let me hear her voice one last time, to let me tell her, to allow me just three more words.

In my last moments, the noise began to settle down and I heard her.

"I love you," she said as she sobbed against my chest. My lower half was numb with cold, but I could still feel her warm tears against my neck. I felt my limbs change, but I couldn't see them. It was then that I died. Darkness fought to take me and I was plunged suddenly into an icy cold that felt very much like a river, but I was sure it was probably just the rain. I expected to wake up at any moment. When it was obvious that I was not, I slowly started to give in to the current and let the darkness win. The last thing I was able to see clearly were stars high above my head, though they seemed to get closer. After that, I was never to wake again.

The End


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